Sheet-opening method



M j, 1929. FRAHM 1,711,997

j; SHEET OPENING METHOD Filed Sept. 15, 1925 5 Sheets$heet 1 a@@ n@ {@ao 0Q 40 May 7,, 1929.

C. A. FRAHM SHEET OPENING METHOD Filed Sept. 13, 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet 2mm fMZ/W amww y 7, 1929- c. A. FRAHM 1,711,997

SHEET OPENING METHOD Filed Sept. 13, 1923 5 Sheeis-Sheet 3 o o; oo

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y 7, 1929- c. A. FRAHM SHEET OPENING METHOD Filed Sept. 15, 1925 5Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented May 7, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CARL A. FRAHM, or CANTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR To CENTRAL ALLOY sTnEL conrom.

men, or CANTON, 01110, A coaronATIoN on NEW YORK.

SHEET-OPENING METHOD.

Application filed September 1a, 1923. Serial No. 662,589.

The invention relates to a method and a machine for separating metalsheets of a pack into which they have been folded and rolled in a hotmill for reducing them to a desired thickness or gauge; and the objectof theimprovementis to separate the sheets in such a pack by apparatusand mechanism, as distinguished from the manual means fre uent-lyemployed for that purpose, and to 0 the same without tea-ring or undulywrinkling the sheets, so that they can be readily lifted apart whendelivered from the machine or apparatus in a fiat condition for thefinishing processes.

The machine with which the present invention is more particularlyconcerned may be used; in series with other apparatus for carrying outthe difi'erent stepsin the im proved method, with which the invention ismore generally concerned; and when so used may be preceded in the seriesby a cold roll mill, sheet trimming mechanism and cold spraying means,and may be succeeded in the series by suitable delivery means includinga set of flattening rolls.

The particular machine or mechanism however may be generally usedwithout such other apparatus for opening sheets in a pack; and theparticular method employed in the improved opening mechanism per se isto progressively curve the sheet from end to end around a roll ofcomparatively small diameter driven in conjunction with a coinpressingroll of relatively large diameter,

' whence the curved sheet is immediately flexed reversely in astraightening shoe channel substantially tangent to the smaller roll andhaving a suflicient width to freely guide the straightened pack withoutany compression thereof, thereby separating or opening the sheets byreversely flexing the curved pack.

The improved machine, and apparatus by which the improved methods may becarried out, are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming parthereof, in which-e Figure l is a general plan view, in two sections, ofthe sheet opening machine, and the apparatus with which it may beassociated;

Fig. 2, a plan View of the sheet opening machine, with parts broken awayto show interior details;

Fig. 3, a right side view of the sheet openmg machme;

Fig. 4, a section of the. same on line 4-4, Figs. 1 and 2; and

' Fig. 5, an enlarged section of the sheet opening machine, showing theparticular method of opening or separating the sheets in a pack by theoperation of the machine per se.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawings.

For carrying out a' general process for opening a pack of sheets whichhave been rolled to an extremely thin gauge and which have been oxidizedor welded together to an unusual extent, the apparatus may include 1nseries a cold roll mill A, sheet trimming mechanism B, cold sprayingmeans C, a sheet opening machine D, a set of straightenmg rolls E and aset of flattening rolls F.

When such a series is used, a pack. of sheets Gr comingfrom a hot mill,is first operated upon by the cold roll mill to flat-ten out anyfullness or buckling there may be in thepack, which action may initiatea separation of contiguous sheets in particular places; whence the packmay be trimmed on its edges and on each end respectively by roller andreciprocating mechanism fo r better preparing the pack for the openingoperations; whence it may be operated upon by a cold water sprayingsystem C, which acts to successively cool the sheetsfrom the two sidesto the middle of the pack, thereby starting a separation of the sheetsby the difierential contraction of contiguous sheets during the coolingthereof; whence it may be operated upon by the sheet opening machine D,to fully separate and open the sheets; whence it is operated upon bystraightening rolls E, to straighten the sheets in the pack from thecurve given them by the opening operation; whence the pack may bedelivered through flattening rolls F, to eliminate any waves or kinksorany fullness or buckling which may have been produced therein by thesheet opening machine, and to make them ready for finishing processes.

The sheet opening machine D preferably includes two pairs of feed rolls6 and (i driven by intermeshing gears 7 and ,7 on each end by pinions 8on a main shaft 9 having a master gear 10 on one end driven by a pinion11 on a shaft 12 carrying a driving pulle belt or ot er source.

A pair of stationary guides 14 and 14 span the space between the pairsof feed rolls, and are provided with fingers 15 extending each way intoannular grooves 16 formed at spaced intervals along the rolls so as tocarry the fingers well toward the centers of the same, for guiding apack of sheets from one set to the other of the feed rolls; and asimilar pair of stationary guides 17 and 17 is located in rear of therear pair of feed rolls to carry the pack of sheets rearward from thesame to the bending or curving rolls 18 and 19, located in rear of thefeed rolls, and the upper guide- 17 may be provided with fingers 17extending rearward to the upper bending roll 1.9.

The lower bending roll 18 is of much greater diameter than the upperbending roll 19, and as shown in the drawings, the ratio of thesediameters may be as seven, to one and one-half. These rolls are drivenin unison by intermeshing gears 20 and 21 on their ends by means ofdriving gears 22 on each end of the larger roll, and intermediate gears23 between gears 22 and the lower gears 7 on the lower rear feed roll.

The smaller roll 19 may be supported and held in position by backin orhearing blocks 24, which may be ma e of wood or other suitable materialfor preventing a grinding of a feed roll; and these backing blocks maybe secured in position by means of an angle bracket 25, upon the rearside of which is secured an upright shoe plate 26 having its rear face27 extending directly upward from and substantially tangent to the rearside of the smaller bending roll 19, the lower end of whichshoe platemay be cut to conform to the periphery of the smaller bending roll andmay act as a scraper to clean the same.

An abutment shoe 28 is located in rear of the bending roll 19 and theshoe plate 26, and is preferably provided with fingers 28 extepdingdownward into annular grooves 29 formed at spaced intervals along thelower bending roll 18. The forward face of the abutment shoe 28 isspaced in rear of the rear face of the shoe plate 26, and issubstantially parallel therewith, so as to form a straight-way orshoe-channel 30 extending upward from the rear side of the bending roll19, and being wide enough to freely pass the sheets of a pack upwardwithout any compression, after they have been separated or opened in thelower part of the channel.

A set of straightening rolls E, located above the outlet of the shoechannel 30, may include a pair of spaced driven rolls 31 and 31 havingalternate ends driven by chain 13 receiving power through a 31, betweenwhich they are reversely curved upon the center of the idle rolls 33;and a series of guide bars 35 preferabl rise from the abutment shoe 28,in rear of the guide fingers 35, so as to form a guide way for theupward movement of the sheets of a 2 pack as they rise from the openingmechamsm.

A pair of guides 37 and 37 is preferably mounted above the straighteningrolls E, to form a curved way 38 for carrying the sheets upward andrearward to a pair of feed-out rolls 39, which deliver the pack of 0 ensheets upon a table 10 and into the flattening rolls F, whence theopened sheets may be discharged on to a conveyor table 41.

Suitable means are provided for adjusting the several sets of rolls andguides, which may include screws 12 for the feed rolls, screws 43 forthe feed guides, screws 44 for the larger curving roll, screws 45' forthe abutment shoe, screws 46 for the idle straight rolls, screws 47 forthe delivery guides, and screws 48 for the feed-out rolls; and theseveral operating parts are adjusted for performing their severalfunctions in the work to be performed by them, as follows:

In the operation of the opening machine, a pack of sheets G is fed bythe feed rolls 6 and 6 through the guides 14, 14 and 17 17 so as toenter the lower forward nip of the bending rolls 18 and 19; the feedrolls being adjusted to drive the pack'forwardfor the curvingoperations, and the guides being adjusted to hold the pack stiff andstraight as it approaches the curving rolls.

Upon entering the nip of the curving rolls the pack is progressivel andcontinuously curved sharp y upward hy bending around the periphery ofthe smaller curving roll 19 as it is acted upon by the larger curvingroll 18, which is adjusted to compress the pack during the curvingoperation, whence the curved sheet is directed upward into the shoechannel 30.

Upon emerging from the curving rolls, the curve which has been given tothe pack tends to cause it to continue rearward over the smaller curvingroll, but as soon as the pack impinges the rear face of the shoe plate26 it is flexed directly upward, as shown at 49 in Fig. 5. By reason ofthe abutment given to the curved pack by the rear face ofthe shoe 28, asshown at 50 in freely without any compression of the comparatively wideshoe channel 30, the sheets are separated and opened by the difi'erential movement of contiguous sheets after the bond or adhesion has beenbroken by the compressing action of the curving rolls.

As the pack is fed through the machine, the opened sheets continueupward between the straightening rolls E, which reversely curves thepack by a compressing action, and sets the sheets straight from thecurve which has been given them by the opening operation; after whichthe sheets of the opened pack are driven through the guideway 38 to thefeed-out rolls 39, and thence on through the flattening rolls F onto thedelivery conveyer 4:1.

.By these means, preceded it need be, by either one or more of the coldrolling, the sheet trimming or the spray cooling operations, a pack ofsheets of the thinnest gauge and greatest adhesion can be so completelyseparated and opened, that they may be readily lifted apart whendelivered from the machine, without any rupture or tearing of the same,and in proper trimmed, straightened and flattened condition for thefinishing processes.

I claim:

1. The method of opening a pack of sheets which consists in continuouslyand progressively curving the pack under compression in one dlrection,pack without compression and then flexing the in reverse directions.

2. The method of opening a pack of sheets which consists in cold rollingthe pack, then continuously and progressively curving the pack undercompression in one direction, and then reversely flexing the packwithout compression progressively from end to end.

3. The method of opening a hot pack of sheets which consists in trimmingthe pack, then continuously and progressively curving the pack undercompression in one direction, and then reversely flexing the packwithout compression progressively from end to end.

4. The method of opening a hot pack of sheets which consists in spraycooling the same, then continuously and progressively curvingthe packunder compression in one direction, and then reversely flexing the packwithout compression progressively from end to end.

5. The method of opening a pack of sheets which consists in continuouslyand progressively curving the Back under compression in one direction, ten reversely flexing the pack without compression progressively from endto end to open the sheets, then re- Versely curving the pack tostraighten the sheets, and then collectively flattening the sheets.

6. The method of opening a pack of sheets which consists in cold rollingthe pack, then trimming the pack, then spray cooling the pack, thencurving and reversely flexing the pack progressively from end to end toopen the sheets, then reversely curving the pack to straighten thecurved sheets, and then collectively flattening the opened sheets.

- CARL A. FRAHM.

